Black Cake: A Novel By Charmaine Wilkerson

Legacy: an exquisite West Indies black cake that is rumored to be cursed—or blessed—with everything from property to health. In London, Eleanor’s daughter, Maxine, a cookbook author, mourns her mother’s death. She has never contemplated a relationship with the rich side of her family and is devastated to learn that she won’t ever get the chance. Maxine is able to eke out information about her mother’s mysterious father, a Bahamian, but her initial reluctance to reach out to the rest of her family melts as she is faced with a series of challenges—a brewing scandal about her first cookbook, the legacy of her parents’ divorce, and her brother’s relationship with the beautiful starlet Illegitimate Chance.

In the midst of this, Maxine discovers a recipe that transports her back to her mother’s kitchen in London and, eventually, to the funeral in the Caribbean. It is there that she learns the power of a good piece of black cake—to not just heal a family but to seal it.

Told with incredible heart and warmth, Black Cake announces the arrival of a new voice in fiction with a story that is perfect for our time: an homage to family and the foods that make us who we are. 📚❤️